Always Only You by Chloe Liese (z-lib.org).epub

Playlist: “Crush,” Tessa Violet
I DON’T KNOW WHY I PLAY FOOTSIE WITH HIM UNDER THE TABLE. I DON’T KNOW
why it feels so relieving to confess that I feel vulnerable, that the prospect of
intimacy terrifies me, because one day he could do what others have done before
and hurt me.
What I do know is that as we eat and I replay his response in my memory,
my heart beats calm and steady, an unfamiliar warmth centering beneath my
ribs, radiating to tender, forgotten corners of my body.
I know that sunlight on Ren’s hair shines like a weathered copper penny, that
some fragile bud of happiness blossoms inside me as we eat in comfortable
quiet. He’s willing to prove his trustworthiness when he shouldn’t have to, and I
wish I didn’t need that from him. I wish I didn’t see people as guilty until proven
innocent. But the past has been a harsh teacher, and its lesson isn’t easily
forgotten—I don’t get hurt when I adopt a self-protective outlook.
“So.” Setting down his fork, Ren leans back and lounges in his seat, hands
behind his head.
“So.” I slurp the last of my root beer, then frown down at it. When I glance
up, he’s smiling at me. “What?”
He shakes his head. “What do you plan to do between the season ending and
starting law school?”
“Well, not too much. Study, read, catch up on sleep. Maybe get a hip
replacement.”
He drops his hands, his eyes widening. “Frankie, you didn’t tell me your hip
was that bad—”
“Easy, Ren. It was a joke. A bad one, obviously.”
Ren scrubs his face, then rakes his fingers through his hair. “Okay, I’ll catch
up. Autoimmune diseases and major surgeries are fair game for humor.”